--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was growing up, hip-hop was still…" description: "\"When I was growing up, hip-hop was still a pretty specialised thing.\" — Estelle" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/estelle-4116_growing_when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still_1957334.jpg" --- # When I was growing up, hip-hop was still a pretty… ![“When I was growing up, hip-hop was still a pretty specialised thing.” quote by Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/estelle-4116_growing_when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still_1957334.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/estelle-4116_growing_when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still_1957334.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/estelle-4116_growing_when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still_1957334.jpg) > “When I was growing up, hip-hop was still a pretty specialised thing.” [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hip‑hop was niche when I was young, highlighting its evolution into mainstream culture. **In simple terms:** Hip‑hop used to be niche. Key Takeaway Recognize how subcultures become mainstream. Themes culture music growth Mood reflective optimistic Type cultural observational When to use this quote - Music festivals - urban fashion - media coverage Key Concepts Subculture diffusion mainstream adoption Questions to Reflect On - How did hip‑hop’s popularity change your perception? - What factors drive niche art forms mainstream? A Different Perspective Subcultures may face resistance before acceptance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Growing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing/) [Growing Hip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-hip-3211194/) [Growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-up/) [Hip hop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hip-hop/) [Hop Pretty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hop-pretty-3211195/) [Pretty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretty/) [Pretty Specialised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretty-specialised-3211192/) [Rapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rapper/) [Specialised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/specialised-2892190/) [Specialised Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/specialised-thing-3211193/) [Still](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/still/) [Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing/) [Up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/up/) ## Related quotes > [Our time is so specialised that we have people who know more and more or less and less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvar-aalto/our-time-is-so-specialised-that-we-have-people-who-know-more-and-more/) [Alvar Aalto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvar-aalto/) > [If you watch wrestling, you now know the hip-hop culture is being represented with wrestling. For the longest time, the cultures have almost been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cena/if-you-watch-wrestling-you-now-know-the-hip-hop-culture-is-being/) [John Cena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cena/) > [My first album, 'Get Lifted,' was a hip-hop soul album that had some of its roots in the church, as far as the sonic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-legend/my-first-album-get-lifted-was-a-hip-hop-soul-album-that-had-some-of/) [John Legend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-legend/) > [It's not about a salary, it's all about reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krs-one/it-s-not-about-a-salary-it-s-all-about-reality/) [KRS-One](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krs-one/) > [For me, growing up in hip-hop culture, it's all about having the next style, the new fashion, the new way to express yourself, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/el-p/for-me-growing-up-in-hip-hop-culture-it-s-all-about-having-the-next/) [El-P](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/el-p/) > [I come from a young, hip-hop, urban world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-t-jackson/i-come-from-a-young-hip-hop-urban-world/) [Brandon T. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-t-jackson/) > [If you don't know hip-hop, at least a little bit of it, you can't even call yourself an American.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krs-one/if-you-don-t-know-hip-hop-at-least-a-little-bit-of-it-you-can-t-even/) [KRS-One](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krs-one/) > [Wherever I go, I bring the culture with me, so that they can understand that it's attainable. I didn't do it any other way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/wherever-i-go-i-bring-the-culture-with-me-so-that-they-can-understand/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [If you scared to take chances, you'll never have the answers...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/if-you-scared-to-take-chances-you-ll-never-have-the-answers/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [Couples Therapy' is pretty big for me because it's opening the door to a new audience - a hip-hop following, which I feel is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-carrera/couples-therapy-is-pretty-big-for-me-because-it-s-opening-the-door-to/) [Carmen Carrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-carrera/) > [I gave birth to most of them MC's... So when it comes around to the month of May, Send me your royalty check for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxanne-shante/i-gave-birth-to-most-of-them-mc-s-so-when-it-comes-around-to-the/) [Roxanne Shante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxanne-shante/) > [God is never late, we're just impatient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lecrae/god-is-never-late-we-re-just-impatient/) [LeCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lecrae/) > [By the time you get into other kinds of music - R&B, country, or whatever - it becomes something that's romantic. It becomes something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/talib-kweli/by-the-time-you-get-into-other-kinds-of-music-r-b-country-or-whatever/) [Talib Kweli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/talib-kweli/) > [Everything affects hip-hop. The question is, how does it affect the money that corporations are going to invest to put out different kinds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-i-am/everything-affects-hip-hop-the-question-is-how-does-it-affect-the/) [will.i.am](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-i-am/) > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) ## More by Estelle > [I'm signed to a U.S. label, and I didn't enjoy the 3 A.M. phone calls. I'm not a great sleeper, so I didn't enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/i-m-signed-to-a-u-s-label-and-i-didn-t-enjoy-the-3-a-m-phone-calls-i/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [My favorite film involving scarves was little Edie in 'Grey Gardens.' I often wear scarves like that, under hats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/my-favorite-film-involving-scarves-was-little-edie-in-grey-gardens-i/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [If you cannot smile when you listen to music, then do not listen to it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/if-you-cannot-smile-when-you-listen-to-music-then-do-not-listen-to-it/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [For four years, my mum allowed only church music in the house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/for-four-years-my-mum-allowed-only-church-music-in-the-house/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [I have my family; I'm never alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/i-have-my-family-i-m-never-alone/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [You know, sometimes you fall in love and you get treated badly, sometimes you get treated well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/you-know-sometimes-you-fall-in-love-and-you-get-treated-badly/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [Success is based on music, not where you're from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/success-is-based-on-music-not-where-you-re-from/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [The most personal track would have to be 'Love The Way We Used To.' It's one of the songs that I listen to outside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/the-most-personal-track-would-have-to-be-love-the-way-we-used-to-it-s/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [If I don't agree with something, I let people know, and it occasionally leads to tension. But I usually iron things out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/if-i-don-t-agree-with-something-i-let-people-know-and-it-occasionally/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [We get older, and we forget that we have to carve a little time out to feel good in your body, in your head,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/we-get-older-and-we-forget-that-we-have-to-carve-a-little-time-out-to/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [Some days I might be wearing a little dress, and some days I might be wearing something with wings on it and be confusing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/some-days-i-might-be-wearing-a-little-dress-and-some-days-i-might-be/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [I remember being, like, the age of 7 and just always being in control of something or someone, a baby somewhere. I had lots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/i-remember-being-like-the-age-of-7-and-just-always-being-in-control/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [You can't please everybody. I give up. I'm not trying to. I don't care. Leave me alone with that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/you-can-t-please-everybody-i-give-up-i-m-not-trying-to-i-don-t-care/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [I just have a way about me where people know that they don't tell me what to do, they kind of just wait for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/i-just-have-a-way-about-me-where-people-know-that-they-don-t-tell-me/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) > [I would say my greatest musical influences have been Ella Fitzgerald and Mary J. Blige.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/i-would-say-my-greatest-musical-influences-have-been-ella-fitzgerald/) [Estelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) [Explore all 116 Estelle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/) ## More Growing quotes > [I have a strong feeling about this quick movement and changing of society and populations growing - something scary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiroshi-sugimoto/i-have-a-strong-feeling-about-this-quick-movement-and-changing-of/) [Hiroshi Sugimoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiroshi-sugimoto/) > [Public infrastructure around the world is facing unprecedented stress, with hurricanes, cyclones, floods and forest fires all increasing in frequency and intensity. It's easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/public-infrastructure-around-the-world-is-facing-unprecedented-stress/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [I became a bit of a teacher's pet, and it became known in the school by both faculty and students that I really excelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-became-a-bit-of-a-teacher-s-pet-and-it-became-known-in-the-school/) [Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/) > [Well, I've been politically involved for a really long time. Growing up in the segregated South, it was a very painful experience for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/well-i-ve-been-politically-involved-for-a-really-long-time-growing-up/) [Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/) > [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. Like I'm trying to find a new place, grab hold of a new life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-always-feel-like-i-m-struggling-to-become-someone-else-like-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Throughout our history, the words of the Declaration have inspired immigrants from around the world to set sail to our shores. These immigrants have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/throughout-our-history-the-words-of-the-declaration-have-inspired/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [ I failed, I think, seven \[or\] eight times before I finally got my first \[championship\]. It was just, you know, just about me growing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/i-failed-i-think-seven-or-eight-times-before-i-finally-got-my-first/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [Every woman I have ever loved has left her print upon me, where I loved some invaluable piece of myself apart from me-so different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audre-lorde/every-woman-i-have-ever-loved-has-left-her-print-upon-me-where-i/) [Audre Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audre-lorde/) > [I think kids growing up, if they were picked on and feeling inferior at 12, they're going to feel that way at 72. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvester-stallone/i-think-kids-growing-up-if-they-were-picked-on-and-feeling-inferior/) [Sylvester Stallone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvester-stallone/) > [I felt pretty good growing up. I didnt feel a lot of prejudice or racism. But I do remember, if there was going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-henry-hwang/i-felt-pretty-good-growing-up-i-didnt-feel-a-lot-of-prejudice-or/) [David Henry Hwang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-henry-hwang/) > [But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-the-effect-of-her-being-on-those-around-her-was-incalculably/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [I wasn't a kid growing up thinking, 'One day I'll get an Oscar and make a speech.' That wasn't on my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-sandler/i-wasn-t-a-kid-growing-up-thinking-one-day-i-ll-get-an-oscar-and-make/) [Adam Sandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-sandler/) > [I have no hesitation in saying that although the American woman never leaves her domestic sphere and is in some respects very dependent within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-have-no-hesitation-in-saying-that-although-the-american-woman-never/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [I was young, but to me that was underground music. I had never heard anything like Venom or any of that stuff growing up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-pajo/i-was-young-but-to-me-that-was-underground-music-i-had-never-heard/) [David Pajo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-pajo/) > [Growing up I did commercials and things like that, but nothing serious. As I got older, my family is really hardcore into academics. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-doubleday/growing-up-i-did-commercials-and-things-like-that-but-nothing-serious/) [Portia Doubleday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-doubleday/) [Browse all 7,266 Growing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was growing up, hip-hop was still a pretty specialised thing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Estelle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still-a-pretty-specialised-thing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Growing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still-a-pretty-specialised-thing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/estelle-4116_growing_when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still_1957334.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/estelle-4116_growing_when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still_1957334.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/estelle-4116_growing_when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still_1957334.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I was growing up, hip-hop was still a pretty specialised thing.” — Estelle", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Estelle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/estelle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When I was growing up, hip-hop...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still-a-pretty-specialised-thing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/estelle/when-i-was-growing-up-hip-hop-was-still-a-pretty-specialised-thing/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```